Said the Spider to the Fly
by yveltaldarkrai3
Summary: At long last the Sorcerer Kingdom is established. Having assimilated or vassalized many nations, it is now a great power in the New World. However, things are not as they seem in this strange land. Hidden powers influence events that may lead to the greatest threat that Nazarick has ever known. (Takes place after Volume 13)
1. A Tangled Web

**A/N: Thanks for joining me! Hopefully you enjoy this first chapter and remember to read, review, and enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: Overlord does not belong to me**

**Chapter 1**

Entoma watched as the tiny black beetle crawled across the fine grained floor. It had been a while since she had eaten, and Kyouhukou's cockroaches only restricted themselves to the second floor. Saliva dripped down from under her mask as the beetle continued its lengthy trek towards the cabin door. It stopped for a moment as if to gauge its surroundings, and that's when the arachnoid decided to strike. Grasping the struggling insect with her pincers, she raised it to her hidden mandibles.

Entoma felt a breeze tickle her antenna and she turned, her hard armor bug fully formed and aimed towards whatever had alarmed her.

"Aaahh! You caught me!"

Entoma lowered her shield, still hanging onto her snack, "Lupisregina," She greeted.

The werewolf of the Pleiades grinned, placing her hands on her hips, "Almost got you by surprise En-chan. Should've remembered your antennae."

Entoma dispelled her shield and tilted her head slightly to convey her amusement, "I'll be sure to act surprised next time. I don't want to spoil your fun."

"It's no fun when the reaction isn't genuine, "Lupis replied, frowning in mock disappointment. Her grin returned a second later, "Your shift up here is done anyway, I'm here to replace you. Not permanently...I think."

"See you later Lupis," Entoma replied, handing over the [**message**] scroll that she was required to have while being a sentry.

The werewolf took the scroll, amusement sparkling in her yellow eyes. The arachnoid turned to view the already open trapdoor in the floor of the cabin, presumably used by Lupis when she had attempted to sneak up on her. Entoma started to ascend the ladder, only to realize that she still had the beetle clutched in one pincer. She placed the still struggling insect in her mandibles and ate it with a satisfying _crunch_ before descending the ladder.

The [**gate**] in the basement took her directly to Floor Nine of the Great Tomb of Nazarick. This was only possible because she was a recognized member of the Tomb. Any other would have been torn apart by the statues that flanked the [**gate**]. The arachnoid made her way towards the entrance to floor ten, pausing briefly to let a trio of homunculus maids pass. She could feel their eyes upon her back as they passed. Entoma knew that she wasn't the most well liked of the Pleiades. Most maids never talked to her, either because they never knew what to say or they didn't want to.

She felt a slight twinge of envy towards CZ. She was the most well liked out of most of the maids. Entoma knew that the automaton would have no trouble making friends among the homunculi, especially considering the fact that she had a friend amongst the humans. An inferior race no less!

Under the mask she closed her eyes and ended the train of thought. Feelings like that would be counterproductive to serving Nazarick. The [**gate**] to the tenth floor loomed up ahead, and Entoma steeled herself for what she had to do next.

Emerging into the Great Throne Room, Entoma saw him. The Overlord of the Sorcerer Kingdom, the last of the Forty-One Supreme Beings to remain in Nazarick, and the one who had promised her vengeance towards the voice-stealer Evileye sitting on his throne, listening to a report from one of his most trusted advisors, Demiurge.

Entoma waited in the back for the demon to stop speaking before she went up to deliver her own report, and as the two passed each other, the arachnoid felt another twinge, this one of gratitude. She never forgot the moment in which he saved her, neither had she forgotten her anger towards Evileye.

The Overlord seemed troubled as he sat through Entoma's summary of her sentry duties for that day.

"You say that you saw nothing today?" He asked, steepling his fingers.

"Yes Lord Ainz,"

"Nothing? No life?"

"Yes Lord Ainz,"

Ainz absorbed this information silently, looking troubled.

"Lord Ainz, I apologize for any action I might have-"

The Overlord cut Entoma off with a wave of his hand, "It is not your fault Entoma, merely, the world has seen fit to put a damper on my plans,"

The Arachnoid bowed, acknowledging her Lord's mercy.

"You have done well Entoma, enjoy your rest. You have earned it"

The arachnoid bowed again, knowing that her plea for more work would be ignored by Lord Ainz. Leaving the floor via [**gate**], she realized why it had felt quieter when talking to the Overlord,

Where was Albedo?

Entoma pondered that question for a few moments before dismissing it. If Lord Ainz had not questioned it, he probably knew where she was. Besides, Entoma felt hungry. Perhaps she would visit floor two for a quick snack.

* * *

Ainz Ooal Gown stared down at the Floor Guardian roster, one name in particular catching his interest.

The Overlord hadn't seen the overseer of the floor guardians for a while. The last he remembered seeing her was yesterday when he had exited floor ten to speak to an envoy from the Baharuth Empire asking for aid. He had received no response to the messages he had sent and the name on the roster hadn't shown any status changes to her, so what was the matter?

Ainz slammed a bony fist down on his armrest, feeling immense frustration before his limiter forced him to calm down. As the green glow faded, he pondered why it would have been yesterday that he had last seen her. It had to have had to do with the reports that both Demiurge and Entoma had delivered. Demiurge had explained how he had felt an immense surge of power from the mountains bordering the Re-Estize Kingdom and Baharuth Empire. However, any scouts sent there had not returned.

The information from Entoma was troubling. If he hadn't destroyed it, he would have attributed the lack of animals to Zy'tl Q'ae, however, he had well...destroyed it. Ainz straightened up and cast the [**message**] spell.

"Shalltear, gather the floor guardians and bring them to the throne room. I have something to inform you about."

Cutting the spell, he sank into his throne feeling guilty that he didn't pursue this earlier.

"Forgive me if she's dead, Tabula, " He whispered.

* * *

Entoma patted her abdomen, the sharpest edge of her hunger having been sated with some of Kyouhukuo's subjects but now she was at a loss of what to do next. There was still plenty of daylight outside, and she was freed from work for the rest of the day. She thought about checking some of the webs she had strung up on the Sixth Floor. Perhaps she had caught some low tier undead that had foolishly wandered into the trap.

Then she remembered that the area where she had strung the webs had been cordoned off by Aura, who feared one of her precious beasts falling into one. Entoma suddenly felt lonely.

All of her sisters were either engaged in a task or enjoying their own day. Lupis was on sentry duty, Solution was off in the Slane Theocracy spying for Lord Ainz, Sebas was off somewhere, most likely gallivanting around with Tuare. Narberal… she shook her head, wishing for company wouldn't make it come to her. She had to go find it herself.

The arachnoid suddenly heard the childlike voice belonging to Shalltear Bloodfallen coming from the hallway that led to the [**gate**] to the tenth floor.

"...understood Lord Ainz. I am on my way"

As the vampiric floor guardian came into view, she spotted Entoma who was standing outside of the black capsule, and subtly quickened her pace.

As Entoma watched the vampire enter the [**gate**] a spark of inspiration hit her. She made her own way towards the [**gate**] to the third floor, confident that she would find company there.

In a dark room on the Third floor of Nazarick, four pairs of long legs unfolded themselves from where they had been pressed up against the wall. Eight unblinking eyes opened, and focused on the entrance to the room. A new presence had entered the floor.

Entoma exited the portal and started meandering down the hallway in search of her special web. It had been made by Lord Genjiro himself, and that alone made it more precious than any of her own. It stretched from wall to wall in an unbroken spiral pattern. Gaps on the top, bottom, and sides made it so the other denizen of the third floor could make her way to and fro.

Entoma jumped up onto the web and closed her eyes, letting its familiar stickiness and softness cradle her. Occasionally she would lie there for hours, imagining herself in Lord Genjiro's arms. She wished that he was still here.

"Hello little one."

Entoma opened her eyes to see another arachnoid hovering over her. This one was bigger, at least two times the size of her own body. Bright red eyes made eye contact with the mask covering Entoma's true face.

"Hello mother,"

Grant, guardian of the third floor, subordinate to Shalltear Bloodfallen, and fellow arachnoid stared down at Entoma from her position on the ceiling.

"Why do you still use the voice of prey in my presence?" Grant asked, "You know that I enjoy speaking to you in the voice of our kin"

Entoma glanced to the side, "I like this voice better"

Grant let out a vibrating sound that Entoma took as a laugh, "Little one, I see that you will not part with your voice, so I'll allow it, but you must tell me, why? Every time I attempt to make you use your original voice, you always refuse."

The smaller arachnoid pondered this for a second, tilting her head, "For starters, everyone except for Lord Ainz, Lord Demiurge, and my sisters are all uncomfortable with my voice. They may be small winces or subtle shifts with their body, but I can tell,"

Grant gave Entoma a surprised look, "Lady Shalltear has never shown any signs of disliking my voice when I give reports. Are you sure these are true reactions or are they merely reactions from what is affecting their bodies or surroundings?"

Entoma gave this some thought, recalling the occasions where she had to use her original voice because she had lost her other one to Evileye., "I-I couldn't say,"

"I see. Next time there is a large gathering, use your original voice. I will send one of my children to keep an eye on you. We'll both see if there are any changes in any of the Floor Guardian reactions"

"Thank you mother," Entoma responded, a warm feeling starting to make itself known in her belly area. Surrounded by the embrace of her creator and being treated kindly by another of her kind. It made her feel protected and slightly melancholy.

"Little one, I hear that you have established your own webs across floor six. Have you caught any prey?"

Entoma shook her head, "The area has been blocked off," She replied, "No big prey are allowed to roam there,"

"Tch, it's unfortunate that you don't have a floor that you can spin webs in. To be fair, I haven't captured any prey either. Ever since Lord Ains established the Kingdom, my children and I haven't been able to feast on any humans. Enough about me though, how about-"

Grant looked down to see Entoma breathing evenly and laying completely still. The only way to know that she was sleeping because her bug mask never moved.

"Sleep well little one," The floor guardian said fondly, leaving to attend to her other duties.

* * *

"Albedo is gone."

The throne room erupted into pandemonium, each floor guardian attempting to glean answers from Ainz.

"Quiet!" Ainz bellowed. The room went silent immediately. "I do not know where she has gone. What I do know, is that Albedo would have informed me of her actions beforehand."

"Lord. Ainz. Perhaps. Albedo. Has. Betrayed. Us. Like. Shalltear. Had."

The Overlord turned to stare at Cocytus, who visibly wilted.

"I can assure you that she has not been controlled by any Yggdrasil items. Even without mind control, I firmly believe in the fact that Albedo would not betray us on purpose. She is far too loyal to Nazarick...and me."

Ainz took a moment to gauge the reactions of the floor guardians. Most looked anxious or worried. Even Shalltear, who Ainz believed would have been overjoyed at the lack of her rival, looked distressed.

"I think…" Ainz said, mulling over his words, "that whatever you felt, Demiurge, is the cause of Albedo's disappearance. Have you made any further discoveries on it?"

"Well Lord Ainz, I took the liberty of investigating in the mountains myself. A powerful magical barrier blocks any entry from the air, and while I attempted to explore from the ground, _another_ magical barrier blocked me from entering that section of mountain. So I decided to do some experimenting. I sent a contingent of Death Knights beyond the barrier. Strangely, they were able to enter the mountain with no trouble."

"So the barrier does not block a certain type or class," Ainz responded.

"Your wisdom is impeccable my lord," Demiurge replied, "I deduced in fact, that the barrier blocks anyone of level fifty-five or higher. Other than that, I have no idea of what kind of creature could cause this kind of barrier"

"You have done well Demiurge,"

The demon bowed and kneeled next to Cocytus.

"Lupisregina. Tell me, did you see anything during your sentry hours?"

The werewolf, who had been waiting to give her report, stepped forward, "No Lord Ainz."

"Very well. Aura, retrieve any tracker beasts that you have stored away, and return to the throne room."

The dark elf sprang up, and with a resounding, "Yes Lord Ainz!", exited the throne room, dragging her brother along.

That being done, Ainz placed two fingers to his temple, "[**message**]"

On the third floor, Entoma stirred as she heard the voice of her Overlord ring through her head, "Here Lord Ainz!"

While listening to Lord Ainz's recap of what had transpired, the arachnoid jumped off of her web and made her way to the tenth floor [**gate**].

* * *

Inside the throne room, the occupants were speaking in hushed whispers about what had just transpired. Lupisregina approached Entoma as she came out of the portal.

"Albedo's gone" Lupis informed, "On top of that, Lord Ainz wants to go check out the barrier. I wonder if he'll try to break it down?"

"That will be a sight," Entoma replied, glancing over to the Overlord who was busy sending a message.

"Lord Ainz, I've brought them!"

Aura sprang into the room, closely followed by three long legged dogs with spines running down their backs.

"Chupacabras?" Ainz questioned, having finished his messages.

"Yup! I've used them a bunch to help me find something I've misplaced, or to find Mare...he gets lost in the library sometimes."

The younger dark elf poked his head into the room, a blush forming on his face, "Auraaa...you weren't supposed to tell anyone about that."

Aura grinned, pulling Mare into a side-hug, "Sorry little bro, it's just such an interesting phenomenon. How _do_ you get lost in the library?"

"Silence."

The denizens of Nazarick quieted and stared towards Ainz, who was now standing.

"Shalltear Bloodfallen, Demiurge, Entoma Vasilissa Zeta, Aura Bello Fiore. You will accompany me to the site of this barrier. While I am gone, I trust that Cocytus can manage the kingdom along with Pandora's Actor who will continue to masquerade as me in my absence."

The Floor Guardians that were to stay behind murmured their acquiescence with a small " _Lucky." _from Lupisregina, and those who were picked went up to stand next to their Overlord.

Ainz Ooal Gown raised a hand and activated a [**gate**]. The swirling portal opened, and the four denizens as well as the three chupacabras entered it.

* * *

Entoma raised a cloth draped arm to block her sensitive eyes from the sudden sunlight that shone from up above. As she adjusted to the light level, she gradually lowered her arm and beheld her surroundings.

They were standing in a clearing which was surrounded by thick woods. In front of them was were both Yuri Alpha and CZ2128 Delta who were already kneeling in front of the Overlord.

"What information have you gathered so far?" Ainz asked, staring at the large wall of shimmering light that was presumably the barrier.

"Well my Lord," Yuri replied, "Shizu and I have been able to enter the barrier with no problem, just as you said, however we didn't proceed far into the area. Other than that, we have perceived nothing else in this area."

Ainz nodded, "Very well. Everyone, stand back. I am going to attempt to destroy the barrier!"

Entoma launched herself backwards, sensing the rest of their group doing the same. Aura passed her, pulling the Chupacabras on a leash followed closely by Yuri and Shizu.

The pleiades stopped when they reached a safe distance which was a small rock formation right before a massive explosion shook the ground and sent up a dust cloud that could be seen from where they were standing .

"So powerful…" Yuri commented, cleaning her glasses from where dust had covered the lenses.

"Of course. Lord Ainz can do anything." Shizu's monotone managed to convey both respect and confidence.

A few minutes later, Shalltear made her way over to the pleiades.

"Lord Ainz needs us back at his position."

Moments later, the five were in front of the barrier again. The Overlord stood in front of it, his immaculate robes barely ruffled from all of the explosions. His product, a large tear that was now visible in the shimmering barrier.

"That was truly impressive Lord Ainz."

Ainz took in Demiurge's praise but if he thought anything of it he didn't say. Shalltear however, took Ainz's silence as him feeling offended.

"Lord Ainz isn't just impressive," She hissed scathingly, "I doubt that we could even make a dent in that barrier!"

"Forgive me Lord Ainz, I have underestimated your grandeur-" Demiurge started, grasping what Shalltear had thought.

The Overlord held up a hand for silence, and with his other, touched the barrier. Rainbow light rippled up and down the barrier. By Demiurge's barely concealed astonishment, Entoma could tell that this was new to him.

"Entoma."

"Yes Lord Ainz?"

"Come here and touch the barrier."

The arachnoid was confused. Wouldn't she just pass through since she was a low enough level? Yet, she had a feeling that Lord Ainz was right, that she should touch it. So reaching out a cloth draped appendage, she brushed it. Contrary to what she thought, she didn't sink into the barrier. It felt soft and pliable, like...

Suddenly, a bright light flared across every surface of the barrier, blinding everyone who was looking at he. At the same time, Entoma felt something wrap around her leg and yank her into the area beyond the barrier.

Something else grabbed her around the waist, and acted like a dead weight, slowing whatever was dragging her into the interior of the barrier. The pull abruptly strengthened, forcing whoever was holding her around the waist to grip tighter.

* * *

Red dots flickered to life inside of Ainz's skull as he looked towards where Entoma had been dragged off. Displaced leaves formed a path deep into the forest.

"Aura." Ainz resisted the urge to scream the dark elf's name hysterically. His limiter kicked in, sending him back to a calm mindset. First Albedo, now Entoma.

"Here Lord Ainz."

"Send your chupacabras into the forest. Find Entoma."

"Lord Ainz. I don't have anything belonging to her that they can track. Perhaps if we went back to her room…"

"That would take too long." Ainz replied, frustration growing inside of him despite his limiter having just kicked in.

"Lord Ainz. Shizu, she grabbed onto Entoma before going into the barrier."

The Overlord looked over at Yuri, who was, by the expression on her face, feeling the same way as him.

"We'll find them both," He reassured.

"No Lord Ainz, I mean that Shizu drank one of her chocolate drinks lately. It has a distinctive smell that we might be able to track her with."

"That would also require going back to Nazar-"

Ainz looked down at the thermos that Yuri was offering him.

"I usually keep one on hand whenever I'm out. It's my job, being the second-in-command."

Ainz took it and tossed it to Aura, who poured it on the ground, letting the chupacabras take in the scent.

"We're ready whenever you are Lord Ainz," She announced.

The Overlord turned towards Yuri, "I place this mission in your hands Yuri. Bring them back, Do not engage anything unless it attacks you, and if you happen to find Albedo... report to me immediately. Now go!"

Yuri jumped on the back of a Chupacabra and grabbed onto a spine with dear life as it raced off towards the barrier. It rippled as she passed through with no problem.

Ainz turned back to the rest of the party.

"Aura, return to Nazarick and retrieve Gargantua and Mare. Demiurge, Shalltear, you will stay and help me break down this barrier. If it can be cracked, it can surely be broken."

"Yes Lord Ainz!"

As the Overlord opened the [**gate**] for Aura, his thoughts turned towards Albedo. "_Please be alive," _Whispered the voice of Suzuki Satoru.

**A/N:** **That's it for chapter 1! Thanks for reading and please leave any thoughts.**

**Edits: 6/26/2019: Fixed Line Breaks and a plot issue**


	2. Inside the Barrier

**A/N: Thanks to everyone who reviewed! **

**Disclaimer: Overlord does not belong to me.**

**Chapter 2**

At that moment, Entoma finally grasped what it felt to be anything cute in Shizu's arms. Forget whatever was grasping her leg, the automaton squeezed so tightly, it felt like her internal organs were being squeezed out from under her mask.

"Shizu," Entoma managed to gasp, "Please loosen your grip."

She didn't know if the automaton had heard, but the pressure around her waist disappeared slightly. Entoma sucked in a welcome breath of air, and vowed silently never to let Shizu hug her again. Finally free from her lack of oxygen, she could focus on her surroundings.

Trees were whipping by in a blur, flashes of green barely visible to the naked eye were probably blades of grass. At this speed, the arachnoid would have probably gotten squashed like her smaller brethren if smashed against something hard like a log or rock. The fact that that whatever was dragging her avoided these things meant one thing, someone or something wanted her alive.

This meant she had to redouble her efforts to get out the grip of whatever was dragging her, and get back to Lord Ainz.

"Shizu, can you see what's dragging me?"

The answer came back near instantaneously, "It is a tendril. Dark brown and covered with fuzz of some kind. "

Entoma summoned her blade bug and chopped down at where the tendril was attached to her leg. It took a few swings, and moments where she believed that her leg was chopped off, but the tendril was severed. The inertia kept her moving in midair for a split-second, then gravity kicked in and sent the pair crashing to the earth.

Entoma extricated herself from the pile of dress that she and Shizu had ended up in. The automaton stood up and brushed herself clear of any stains.

"Entoma, you okay?"

"I'm fine, but tell me, how did you not get blinded?"

Shizu surreptitiously tugged on her eyepatch. "I'll explain later. More importantly, the path is gone."

The arachnoid jerked around from where she was checking her dress for tears, "What?!"

"Something has been covering any tracks that have been created."

Entoma looked over to where Shizu had been pointing. Sure enough, anything stirred up as she was being dragged had been cleaned up. What used to be the path was now indistinguishable from the rest of the forest.

"Can't we just head that way? As I recall, the tendril just dragged us in a straight line."

Shizu shook her head, "I felt the tendril shift minutely every few minutes. It's more likely that we'd be walking deeper into the barrier rather than out."

Entoma stewed in silence for a brief moment before an idea hit her.

"If we can get above the treeline, you can spot any familiar landmarks that we can use to pinpoint our exact location," She said, removing a talisman from inside of her sleeve.

A second later, Shizu and Entoma grabbed the summoned beetle's legs, allowing it to lift them into the air.

"Anything?" Entoma asked, feeling slightly irritated after a few minutes of Shizu staring at the various mountain ranges surrounding them.

"I don't recognize any of these," Shizu replied, her calm voice doing nothing to soothe Entoma's strung-out nerves, "Unless…"

"Unless what?"

"That plotch of color," Shizu pointed out, "May be the city of E-Rantel. It doesn't look right, but…"

"It's a start," Entoma finished, urging the beetle downwards. As she descended, a flash of green and white escaped her attention.

* * *

In a different part of the barrier, Yuri Alpha felt her undead status evaporate the sharp spike of worry she had felt. The chupacabra no longer was any help. It had lost Shizu's scent a while back. Yuri had hoped for the drink's smell to linger for a while longer, but being dragged through a forest definitely didn't help it stick.

The forest itself was a hindrance. Roots constantly tripped up the running beast, and Yuri had to be careful not to let any branches tear her head off accidently. It had already happened once, and it was not a pleasant experience.

The second-in-command had stopped next to a small stream, letting the chupacabra she was riding drink some water and rest a bit. Removing a [**message**] scroll from one of her dress pockets, she let it evaporate in midair. Placing her fingers to her temple, she waited for an answer. Nothing but static greeted her.

She felt a bout of fear rise in her, then the undead status forced her to calm down and rethink the situation. Communications to the outside world were blocked, so she would have to signal from the above the treeline manually. Hopefully someone was watching.

Yuri climbed a tree, using the same branches that she had avoided to help scale the plant. Upon reaching the top, she was startled to see two familiar figures descending from the sky.

"Entoma! Shizu!"

* * *

The two younger pleiades dropped to the ground, and orienting themselves in the direction of where Shizu believed the city to be, began running. Shizu had reasoned that if her assumption had been false, getting there before nightfall would allow them to obtain a better angle of vantage.

Entoma fell behind quickly, her shorter legs making it harder to keep up with Shizu's longer strides. After a moment of hesitation, she flexed her four auxiliary legs, tearing them free of their bindings and subsequently, her dress.

Her speed greatly increased, bringing her closer to Shizu and allowing her to ask her sister an inquiry.

"Shizu, when we were up in the air...did you hear someone call our names?"

The automaton gave it some thought, "I do not recall anything of that nature."

"Hmph, I could've sworn-" Entoma stopped suddenly, stunned at what was before her. Burnt into a fallen log was the unmistakable staff of Lord Ainz, the symbol of their guild.

A chill went down her spine as she continued to stare at it, frozen in place. Nothing in the forest could have known what the staff of Ainz Ooal Gown looked like, not unless they had gone into the treasury themselves. _Or unless it was Albedo, _a dark voice whispered in the back of her mind.

Shizu, having come over to inspect what Entoma was staring at, gently pulled her sister away from the seal. "Let's go." She whispered, "Or do you want whatever marked this to catch up?"

That alone spurred Entoma to follow her sister, glancing a few times behind her to check that nothing was following the pair.

* * *

Yuri had climbed down from the tree, having no idea whether or not her sisters had heard her. Her signals to Lord Ainz had been made though, and Yuri was fairly confident that her master would be able to see that. There was only one thing to do now.

She had woken the chupacabra which had been napping since she had climbed the tree in order to ride towards where she had seen the pair land. On the way there, she had fervently hoped for the pair to still be there. Unfortunately, she would be mistaken.

* * *

"[**Thousand Bone Lance**]!"

Countless spears slammed into the barrier, sparks flew, and Ainz Ooal Gown was unimpressed. The projectiles had damaged the barrier, but the cost of mana was too high to continuously bombard the glimmering wall.

"Lord Ainz, a message from Yuri."

The Overlord looked up to see Demiurge drop down in front of him. He placed his fingers to his temple, "Mes-"

"Forgive me Lord Ainz, but Yuri has signalled that the spell will not work inside the barrier."

Ainz lowered his fingers, "I see. What exactly did Yuri say?"

The demon cleared his throat, "Well Lord Ainz, due to the limited communication methods, Yuri was only able to tell me that her search was stopped, and that she would try something else. She also explained her inability to use the [**message**] scroll."

"Very well. In the meantime, Demiurge, how is progress on your end?"

"It is going well Lord Ainz, not as well as you have done, but I have made good progress. In fact, I spotted Entoma and Shizu in the air a while ago. I hope that Yuri was able to catch them."

"As do I," Ainz rumbled, "Thank you Demiurge."

The demon bowed and flew back up to continue blasting away at the barrier. A massive shockwave made Ainz turn his head towards Gargantua, who was busy slamming its massive fists into the barrier. The barrier showed signs of stress, but gave no indication when it was going to crack.

Ainz sighed and turned back to the barrier. It was only a matter of time before the barrier fell, then he would find whoever was responsible.

* * *

"We...haven't gotten closer?"

Entoma felt like something had punched her in the gut. All that running, that effort, for nothing?

"Please repeat that!" Shizu yelled up.

Entoma motioned the beetle down from where she had flown up, then landed next to her sister, "We haven't gotten any closer to our destination."

"Interesting."

"I-Is that it! Interesting! We're stuck in the middle of a forest with no help, and most importantly no food, and you say it's interesting!" Entoma shrieked, having lost her nerve with Shizu.

"Entoma, calm yourself. It may simply be a trick o-"

"It isn't a trick!" Entoma replied, "We've been running in circles for the past two hours! We've seen the same burnt marking at least thirty times!"

"It's been twenty-eight last time I counted."

Entoma stared into her sister's blank face, and huffed, "You can keep going on your crazy round-trip adventure, but I'm staying here."

To prove her point, the arachnoid spun a quick web and flopped down on it. She knew that it was childish and perhaps a little stupid, but she was scared, and she was done running in circles. Entoma braced herself for Shizu's backlash.

Shizu merely stared at Entoma, "I guess we do need a break."

The automaton sat herself on a fallen tree trunk and closed her eyes, apparently going into a light recharge. Entoma felt shocked. Had she...won? Once the arachnoid came to grips with her situation, she felt satisfied. It wasn't often that she was able to beat Shizu in their 'little sister' arguments.

A sharp pang of hunger ripped its way through her body. All of the running and yelling had starved her. Perhaps she would set up traps in the woods. Surely there had to be some animals in the barrier. As she soon found out, there were.

Shizu came out of her recharge to see Entoma throw the bones of some sort of animal onto a pile of similar looking bones. It was nearly pitch black outside except for the flickering fire that illuminated Entoma's eerily still mask.

"Entoma. How long was I asleep?"

"About four hours...give or take."

"And why didn't you wake me up?"

"I was hunting."

Shizu was ninety percent sure that Entoma was grinning under her mask. Couple that with her smug tone, and the annoying little sister side of Entoma was active. At least her mood had improved. Entoma acted better with food in her belly.

"I see, well we can't go anywhere with it being dark like this."

"That's what I was planning." Entoma beamed, "I thought that it would be best for whatever marked that log to track us here."

"What?!"

"Except now whatever's out there is pretty clumsy, smashing into leaves and such. I don't think it's whatever marked that log, but it's definitely following us."

The automaton unholstered her rifle, "Is it close?"

"It's nearly here. I just picked it up on my antennae."

Entoma sidled out of the firelight, keeping her eyes fixed in front of her. Her blade bug was strapped to one arm. Shizu lowered her eye to the sight of her rifle, keeping the barrel pointed where Entoma was watching.

A few ticks of silence passed, then a massive beast jumped into the circle of firelight. Shizu opened fire, the magically created darts flying into the beast's side.

It was only when the beast was slumped on the ground in a pile of fur did Shizu stop shooting.

"Well...at least you left me something to eat." Entoma commented, wandering over to inspect Shizu's kill, "It's a chupacabra."

"Is it one of ours?"

Entoma inspected around the beast for the magical brand that Aura put on every beast. She found it on the inside of a floppy ear.

"It's definitely one of ours. Looks like it's in rough shape too. Look at these bites."

Shizu walked over, dread filling her usually calm interior.

* * *

Yuri Alpha stared down at the spider she had just smashed and tried not to feel too guilty about it. It wasn't her sister's, so it should be fine. She just wondered where it was from. Even Entoma's never grew this large.

She hoped that the chupacabra had at least survived. Her mount had scampered when the fighting had begun, but not before the spider had gotten a few bites in.

"Shizu, Entoma where are you?" She muttered, cleaning her fists off with a patch of moss.

A rustle in the nearby bushes made her turn in alarm, her fists ready to pummel whatever it was to oblivion.

* * *

_Moments earlier..._

Shizu placed a cap on the canteen filled with her 'liquid calories' as Solution had nicknamed it. The firelight continued to dance on her expressionless face as Entoma spat webbing onto what remained of the chupacabra.

"You want any?" Entoma asked, waving what looked like the haunch of the beast in one claw.

"Didn't you have enough food already?" Shizu questioned curiously.

"I did. I'm just about to preserve these bits in webbing. Who knows when I'll find something else edible?" Entoma replied in between spitting webbing onto the meat, "Besides, you can never have enough food."

Shizu knew she couldn't argue with that knowledge, so she sat back against the tree trunk she had been resting on. It would be a long night.

She was woken nearly immediately, Entoma's shrieks piercing the still night air.

"Shizu! Shizu!"

Shizu scrambled up onto her feet, ready to fight. Instead, she beheld the sight of Yuri looking slightly bemused while Entoma danced around, obviously happy to be with her oldest sister.

"Big sis." Shizu greeted, much more subdued than the arachnoid.

"Entoma, Shizu. Glad to see that both of you are alive and well. Did the Chupacabra find you?"

Once Entoma calmed down, Shizu learned that Yuri had heard a rustling in the bushes that she had been next to. It turned out to be Entoma, who was dumping a few bones off into the forest. In turn, Shizu relayed their own story, Entoma jumping in to add a few details that the automaton might have missed. They also relayed the unfortunate fate of the tracker beast.

"Aura's going to be mad." Yuri said, "I heard that chupacabras take ages to breed and train. At least you two are still alive."

"Anyway, definitely magical involvement with what happened during your travel," Yuri said, adjusting her glasses studiously, "This barrier is so strange…"

"Hey big sis, now that I know you burned the image into this log, did you see anything that might lead us back to Lord Ainz?" Entoma chimed.

"What...seal?" Yuri asked, confused.

Entoma felt the chills crawl up her back, stronger this time. As if on cue, an eerie wind blew through their gathering, causing the firelight to flicker.

"What seal?" Yuri repeated.

Entoma wordlessly led her over to the burnt image.

"Who, or what could've done this?" Yuri murmured, brushing her finger along the intricate whirls of the staff.

A sudden tingle resonated up Entoma's antenna and as she stumbled back while holding the sensitive organs, various insects began pouring out of both the burnt image and the woods surrounding them. Their location erupted into pandemonium as the dark cloud of insects engulfed the fire.

Shizu began firing indiscriminately into the cloud, each shot causing parts to fly everywhere. The crunching and splats of insects being introduced to Yuri's fists filled the air.

"**Yes... Kill the intruders!"**

Through the irritating buzz in her antennae and the sporadic sounds of gunfire, Entoma could hear crackling laughter, and a voice that sounded like a buzzsaw tearing through wood. Also, as far as she knew, the bugs were avoiding her, only swarming around her desperately embattled sisters.

"Entoma! What's going-"

Yuri's yelled inquiries faded to the back of the arachnoid's mind as she felt the owner of the voice and laugh turn its attention towards her.

"**What is this? An escaped subject? ...No you're not one of mine."**

"You are sorely mistaken." Entoma said out loud, her voice cold, "I am no one's servant except for Lord Ainz'."

The presence gave another (irritating) laugh, "**This 'Lord Ainz' will fall before our might, as will the rest of this puny world."**

Entoma felt a flash of rage at the voice's disparagement of her master. She promised herself that if she ever encountered the voice's owner, she would tear its vocal cords out through its mouth. _Just like she would do to Evileye_.

Entoma turned, and in one swift motion slammed her blade bug into the burnt image of Lord Ainz' staff. The deluge of bugs trickled to a halt and her two sisters took care of the rest.

"What happened?" Shizu asked, holstering her weapon.

"My touch activated the image. There must have been a hidden summoning spell cast on it." Yuri replied, staring over at Entoma who was currently sitting on the log.

"It's gone," The arachnoid muttered, "That means it must be tied to whatever made that image."

"What's gone?" Questioned Yuri, removing a dead wasp from a dress fold.

"The voice. I know you wouldn't have heard it."

"And why's that?" Yuri gently prodded, pulling yet _another_ wasp from her dress.

"It used the same method I do to communicate with my insects." Entoma replied, her voice growing heated. "That means only one thing. I have to annihilate an insect."

"I think we've already done that Entoma." Shizu commented.

Entoma turned her head to glare at her sister, "Not those insects." She hissed, "I mean I have a rival!"

"Ainz save us…" Yuri whispered, "Did your rival tell you anything about what made the image?"

"It didn't." Entoma replied, "But I can tell you what it did say, it said that Lord Ainz was weak compared to them."

A sharp intake of breath from the two other pleiades reflected Entoma's still smoldering anger.

"We'll kill it." Shizu stated flatly, "Nothing insults Lord Ainz and lives."

"It said them." Yuri noticed, "That means we'll have to kill more than one."

In the sudden silence that followed, the three pleiades picked up movement nearby, and surprisingly, voices.

"_I told you there'd be people in this place!"_

"_I never said there wouldn't be. I merely suggested that it would be unlikely for us to find-"_

"_You know what, let's just go to 'em!"_

Entoma armed herself for the third time, prepared for whatever was going to emerge from the shrubbery. She never expected what would come next.

**A/N: That's it for chapter 2! Please leave any questions, comments, or suggestions for improvement in your reviews. Don't worry, I can take them.**


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